“The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping”: creators reveal details of the new film, premiering November 20

The sixth film of “The Hunger Games” saga, titled “Sunrise on the Reaping,” arrives in cinemas on November 20. Based on Suzanne Collins’s novel published in 2025 and produced by Lionsgate, the film serves simultaneously as a sequel to “The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes” and as a prequel to the original “The Hunger Games.”

This time, the Hunger Games count 48 participants — double the usual 24 tributes. Producer Nina Jacobson says managing such a large number of young people on set, along with the extra stunt doubles, turned the shoot into “chaos.”

At the center of the film is the role of Haymitch Abernathy, now young — the character Woody Harrelson played in the saga’s first four films. The role is now taken by actor Joseph Zada, alongside an expanded cast that includes Jesse Plemons, Elle Fanning, Kieran Culkin, Mckenna Grace and Glenn Close. The film follows Haymitch’s transformation, from an optimistic teenager at the start of the Games to the hardened drunk we know from the later films.

Director Francis Lawrence stresses that one of the biggest challenges was keeping all the children safe on set, given the difficult nature of the scenes. For him, finding the right actor for this role was essential, since Haymitch “goes through everything” in this story.

Filming took place in the Asturias region of Spain, which Jacobson describes as the most remote location she has ever worked in: “In the middle of a national park, but with no reception center and no bathrooms,” she said, underscoring the lack of infrastructure.

Source: Reuters